God of Nothing

Aleph was blown quite a distance away, taken by surprise by the massive energy flowing from his student. Along with it came all sorts of dark thoughts swirling about his head. He shook them off immediately, scanning the area for Lacey. She was much closer to the blast and severely weakened. He spotted her sprawled on the ground, gritting her teeth as she clutched whatever handhold she could to stay put. Aleph stood by her, touching one of the empty gems on her dress to activate a spell. An invisible wall was summoned before them, finally allowing the pair to stand in relative comfort.

“Master!” She gasped, struggling to stand. Aleph helped her up, but she wouldn’t even look at him. Instead, she pointed somewhere ahead, at an incomprehensible sight.

It was Lost, beaten and bloody, fiercely attacking a man-sized crystal of black obsidian. From her state, it looked like Starfield had finally overcome her defenses. Her previously monstrous appearance was gone completely. The horrifying draconic armor was literally falling apart, being held together by strands of shadow sputtering from a cracked mana heart. 

And even still, she never stopped fighting. Her spear thrusts were still fierce and precise, but were rebuffed in the same exact place each time. The remains of her helmet literally crumbled into nothing as, in apparent frustration, she struck her horn against the tough crystal. She even wielded the spearhead of Unbroken, desperate to break through.

She threw everything she could at it, but the ominous power only grew. They floated in the sky now, and the clashing energies grew more and more lopsided. A shadow emerged from within one of them, one that had haunted Aleph’s nightmares since the day he became a god. A looming shape, vaguely humanoid but with far more limbs than was normal, carved from the cosmic void. It covered the horizon, blotting out the moon and stars, threatening to send anyone who gazed upon its terrifying visage into madness. The previous forced darkness of the ritual that brought Him here seemed like a joke now, a pale imitation of the vast emptiness that was the God of the Abyss. And at its heart, the sole source of light in the world, was his dear student, who he assumed to be slowly dying within the obsidian. Unlike the previous avatar, though, he was in relatively excellent condition. It gave Erebos plenty of time to destroy them all.

Lost words returned to Aleph once again. The worst has come. He could understand her desperation now, given what had transpired. Whatever he thought she meant at first, this was far worse than that. His beloved student, a prodigy he had never seen in two earths, was now a vessel of dark divinity. 

Erebos, in all His glory, had come. He had earmarked this world for His consumption, and now, He had arrived to devour. 

Figures stepped up from either side of him, likely the only ones left able to fight in these dire straits.

“What, the fuck, is that!?” Carrack swore. He drew up some crystal constructs, giving them all ample shelter from the energy that flowed from the enemy of humanity.

“Master,” Brandon said as he took Lacey from him. “is Rayse–” 

“I don’t know…” Aleph said. He was gravely shaken. They did all they could to prevent this outcome; Countless men, countless heroes laid their lives, but Erebos could not be denied. Vaynard managed to kill a demon king on his own, giving him a measure of hope, but it was all for naught. In the end, Aleph gawked with the rest of them, waiting for the Abyss to swallow them all.

“...Hic, sob…” They looked on in silence, only interrupted by Lacey’s grief. 

And throughout it all, Lost kept on attacking. Sparks flew freely from where she struck,  spear and and broken spearhead dancing uselessly against the barrier. Aleph almost felt bad. He had intimate experience with how impenetrable it was. Erebos’ looming visage, as if unable to bear the pathetic display any longer,  casually swatted her away like a trivial nuisance.

Crashhhh!

She plummeted down to the ground. The little bits of armor she had left were all but useless to the might of a being larger than mountains. Still, she struggled to stand, leaning on her spear for support. She limped forward, step by agonizing step. Aleph’s heart almost cried out for her, but his selfish mind saw this as another sick way that Erebos was torturing him. As if it wasn’t enough that this world would be devoured, now he had to watch his wife die to protect it again.

A black shadow plopped down beside her. It was Betrayal, the dragon of the world. It stood in her path, covered in scars that would have felled any old beast. Scars that beings comparable to heralds had inflicted. 

“GrRoAAAHHHH!”

Just like its owner, the dragon was on its last legs, but it still let loose an impressive roar. Its presence seemed to empower Lost, who was, despite her wounds, as dangerous as he had ever seen her.

“We can’t let it end like this…” It was Lacey who finally made him tear his eyes from this tragic scene. “Rayse is still fighting. I just know it.”

Rayse. Snap out of it! I know you’re listening. She pleaded through mental transmissions, clasping her hands together as if in prayer. She kept it up for a while, like a mantra, until she stood. She stepped forward, shakes and all, towards a being of inconceivable might. Unlike the demon king, Aleph didn’t feel anything from her right now. After killing a herald and critically wounding Lost, he was surprised she could stand at all. She dug into her pockets for something, before launching herself into the fray.

Brandon jogged after her. He was covered in wounds like the rest of them, but on him, they only added to his air of competence. All in all, he looked far more heroic, with his blade that he had honed to such mastery that it could overcome dragons. 

Hang in there, buddy. We’re breaking you out. He sent after his friend.

Carrack and Aleph briefly looked at each other, before turning in unison to admire the young heroes. Aleph remembered how the commander beside him wanted to train up a new crop of heroes, giving the people some new figures to rally around. 

“Is this what you wanted?” Aleph asked.

“It got us this far, didn’t it?” The gruff soldier answered.

“Still. It’s not enough. Nothing we could ever muster is enough.”

“...Looks like it.”

“Then why are you still here?”

“They look like they’ll pull through somehow, don’t you think?” Carrack said bluntly, before walking along with the rest of them.

And so Aleph was left there, staring at the backs of mortals that, inexplicably, still wanted to fight. Suddenly he was back on earth, hurrying along the backs of the mighty. He was no longer the sole decider of whether they won or lost, but just another man trying to survive.

He looked at the blade in his hand once again. Rageblade, made from the horn of its namesake herald. He remembered Vaynard’s sacrifice, burning his life away to defeat what, at that point, had been the biggest threat in the world. If he saw him cowering now after all he had done, he’d laugh straight to his face.

“Sorry. I’m ready now.” He whispered to himself, before engaging its ability to its fullest extent.

“Courage.”

Red beams of light engulfed the champions of man, empowering their bodies in what is likely their final attack. Their steps grew lighter, then more determined, as they embraced the courage to raise up arms against god. Aleph let his power flow through the weapon even more, allowing a couple of beams to reach even Lost and her Dragon, who froze mid step as if surprised at the inclusion.

Thank you. She sent him a final transmission, before getting on top of her mount and flying forward. Aleph had joined the humans by then, overtaking them to lead the charge. Soon enough, they were in the shadow of God, a towering colossus that dwarfed the sky itself. It had kept gaining mass since it struck down Lost, and now looked like it could take the entire world into its hands if it wanted. It wasn’t even like they got closer, but rather the shadow grew so massive that it met them as they came. 

Aleph thought Erebos looked larger than when he previously fought Him, but millenia of godhood taught him that the overgods were divorced from such concepts like size and mass. What he’s perceiving was still just a shadow, an errant thought brought about by a powerful anchor. Earth was but a speck when he descended last time, but here he had an entire world left to feast on. Ironically, Lost’s attempts to save the planet only served to bring about even more of Erebos’ presence than any single one of them could handle.

In short, he was very, very big.

He could feel the mad God’s power begin to pull at him from this close. A solitary eye opened up at the heart of the creature, as it began to sweep up everything. Erebos has begun feeding. From the fauna to the trees, even the valley itself had already begun to be sucked in. Even a minor lapse in concentration and they’ll be sent to the void. 

“The heart! We must go after the heart!” Aleph said as loudly as he could, hoping that Erebos would stop devouring and humor them all for even just a second longer. Rayse’s body, encased in a tough barrier, could be seen somewhere close to the eye, but even getting their attacks to reach would be quite a task.

Aleph began pooling all his mana, from any source he could muster, all for a single spell. The golden glow of his body almost overrode the red from courage. A trace of his old dragon enveloped his body once again, this one big enough to cover his entire party. It anchored their feet to the ground, letting them approach with no recourse. Aleph held the spell in, molding the image as best he could, because he didn’t have another shot. 

“Dragon’s soul.”

Eventually, the glow abated, but the dragon remained, fully realized despite its translucence, ready to fight by his side once again. He could feel himself straining, but he had to hold it in. Not everyone was in position yet.

Betrayal landed beside them all at this point, looking every bit as impressive as the dragon Aleph conjured. It assumed the same position as Lost dismounted, as she too had begun pooling her energy. 

Krrrk.

More cracks travelled across the surface of the mana heart at her head, encasing the surroundings in a thick black fog. Lost even pooled her own body’s magic into it, though for what, even Aleph himself couldn’t say. A bright green light shone within the darkness, showing that Lost had also ignited Unbroken’s gem heart. It was a paltry little thing compared to the rest of her artifacts, but she, like everyone here, was prepared to use everything they had left.

It was true for the others, too. Carrack summoned an array of black crystals on one hand, and a prism of light on the other. Brandon’s sword emitted an after image so massive that it wasn’t dwarfed by the dragons in the vicinity. And Lacey, well, her lack of mana didn’t seem to stop her, as she somehow managed to create a star that, while smaller than any other one she had managed so far, packed a surprising amount of strength. Her blackened hand held something small, something Aleph couldn’t see from where he stood, but whatever it was, it boasted power that didn’t fall behind anyone here.

Aleph attuned himself to his companions, keeping his power in check for when they were all ready to strike. They had one chance at this, and only with their combined might could they even hope to put a dent on that obsidian casing.

Rayse’s fate crossed Aleph’s mind once again, but with extreme difficulty, decided to ignore it. Nobody said it out loud, but regardless of the outcome of their attacks, his life was forfeit.

“Sou–” Aleph began, but held himself back as an abrupt change came upon their opponent.

Gyaaaaak!

The feeding stopped as Erebos doubled over, screeching in pain. Suddenly, the Abyss God's image wasn’t as solid, its presence not quite as imposing. 

I… Rayse’s voice floated to them at this moment, giving everyone a surge of hope. That feeling was fleeting, however, given his next statement.

…I did something dumb.

__________________________________

Rayse was aware of the surroundings, but only vaguely. He watched as Lost almost plunged Unbroken’s speartip into him before she was stopped by Lacey’s magic. He locked eyes with her back then, but it was what he saw that surprised him.

Her eyes blazed with such rage, such unbridled hatred, that he couldn’t believe she could direct at him. In their previous clashes, he always felt that she held herself back. He did expect her to eventually lose sentimentality towards him, but to go straight into hate was just… Something was wrong.

The reason became clear moments later, though, as a strange feeling swept through his body. It wasn’t quite painful, but he didn’t know how else to describe it. It felt like someone else had drawn him up with strings, pulling the energies in his body to do its bidding. It was different from Conquest’s domination, Deceit’s control and Rage’s manipulation, a strange amalgamation of all three. Something else’s will moved him at this moment, something vastly superior. It didn’t need his permission to move him, and his body accepted its command.

He felt himself weaving a spell that was far out of his reach. Whatever moved him injected a far too complex imagery in his mind, one that he could not decipher the workings of. He didn’t need to, though, as the Will also provided him with the spell’s intent: to call forth the God of the Abyss.

The spell’s completion sent mana from his heart all over his body, and exploded it outward. That part was painful. Heedless of his burnt-through veins, mana he didn’t know he had expanded outwards to throw off everyone close to him, before surging back inwards to form a crystalline shell. His consciousness went black soon after, unable to cope with the pain that had taken him out so many times before. The spell continued without him though, as he eventually regained his wits, in constant pain, but now unable to turn away from the genocide he was about to commit.

Here he was, floating in the middle of a vast nothingness, preparing to devour the world.

Snap out of it! The clear tone of Lacey’s mental transmission came to him, bright as the sun in this empty field. He yearned to answer, telling her he was okay, but even that was denied to him.

Hang in there, buddy. Brandon chimed in. Rayse, connected with Erebos’ vast consciousness, found his friend at the vanguard, bravely facing an existential threat who had far outlived them all. He looked pretty cool. He consoled Lacey with one hand, while directed the sword at him with the other.

He felt himself burning away now, starting from his extremities. If berserk turned his insides into mush after hours of use, then this spell will reduce him to ash in a couple of minutes. Strangest thing was, he wasn’t even sad about it. He simply wasn’t allowed to.

For each second that passed, though, he saw more and more how incredible his master was. He had somehow overcome this planet devouring monster, with even less than what they had today.

Courage. As if on cue, red beams of light fell on various places on the battlefield. Even Lost and her dragon were empowered. Predictably, none such beam fell upon him, making him envious.

Lost was in terrible shape. Taking one of Lacey’s strongest attacks and then trying to fight Erebos head on just wasn’t the move. And yet, she walked right up to the front of the group, ready for more. She engaged her power like the rest of them, creating a formidable light against his darkness.

Amidst the pain, he felt something warm in his hand. He was almost surprised, more that he still had hands at all than anything else, but noticed the power had come from the broken spear he had been wielding.

Lost must have activated Unbroken, he thought. The spear thrummed in his hands, reforming to a simple spear. The spearhead in Lost’s possession, and all the rest he had scattered about likely reformed in a similar way. Could he use this?

No, came a response as quick as the question that arose. Not from lack of hope, as seeing his friends bravely standing up to the enemy made him feel a need to do the same. It was simply due to a lack of means. He still couldn’t move his body, so a spear wouldn’t help. 

It gave him something to latch onto, though. He paid more attention to his body, looking for something, anything he could use. His thoughts landed on something on his back, something he had been using this whole time: The dragon scale shield.

Similar to his spear, he couldn’t move his body to hold it before him, but its gem was still intact. His thoughts being free felt like a boon now. He reached into the shield, commanding its powers like he had so many times before, and sure enough…

There. A couple of scales peeled themselves off the shield at his will and floated before him, awaiting orders.

Okay, now what? He had something to work with, but he still didn’t know to what end. He doubted he could break through the obsidian if Lost couldn’t, and even if he did break through, all that would come of it is hastening his own death. If it stops Erebos though…

Should he just kill himself?

He felt the thrum of power in his hand once again. Unbroken, powered by Sonia’s gem, lent him the resolve to follow through. The floating scales rearranged themselves before him, ready to pierce through him at his command.

He remembered Sonia’s sacrifice, pulling out her own heart, consigning herself to death just for him to survive. Now, it was on him to do the same for his friends, and even the world. Suicide didn’t seem like the right answer, though. Erebos didn’t even need his thoughts to cast spells, so he doubted that his life was even a necessity.

Still thinking of Sonia, he sought a compromise. directing the scales like his own limbs, Rayse clawed out his own mana heart.

“Gyaaaaaaak!!” He was happy to lend Erebos his screams, as control returned to his body with a rush of blood. This pain felt like his, and he was proud of it. Regaining control, Rayse cupped a hand over the hole in his chest as he desperately tried to keep his insides where it belonged. 

Tears in his eyes, he redirected some of the mana from his shield to his apprentice brooch, finally able to respond to his friends.

…I did something dumb.

Rayse! A flood of thoughts welcomed him, a mixture of pleasure and concern that almost overwhelmed him. They had no time for that right now, though as, before he broke off the link, Rayse knew that Erebos had begun to devour his planet.

__________________________________

Stop him from feeding. I think I can sever the link.

Aleph was elated at what his student managed to do, but he had to refocus quickly. The God before them was fading fast, and had restarted His feeding. Seas and mountains floated into his gaping maw, threatening to take everybody with it. At this rate, he’d eat away everything on the surface before he disappeared, rendering this another empty victory.

“Courage.” He uttered again, completely draining the blade in his hand to empower his companions. A thick red aura enveloped everyone in the vicinity before completely inhibiting its targets.

“Rayse managed to escape His control, but He still has enough of an anchor to destroy us all. Students, attend me.”

The two swiftly responded. They arrayed themselves on either side of him. Functionally, their duties stayed the same, but Aleph felt stronger just standing next to them.

Erebos loomed, finally making its move. Its colossal limbs started to stretch, covering the entire horizon. Nothing could be seen in the sky now, except for a massive eye, gazing upon them all. Here it was at last: The vaunted Embrace of the Abyss. Will they survive?

Aleph summoned all his strength and then some, pouring out what little mana he had amassed in his own heart in his limited time on this world. Using this much power all at once, he felt an echo deep in his soul. A massive repository of power, belonging to him but refusing his command. It was all he had to show for his previous victory, but it was as useless as ever. Eschewing his godhood for a life in this world made him unable to use it.

No matter. We don’t need it. Aleph breathed in deep, as the image of the dragon he conjured stood on its haunches. Everyone took it as a silent signal, engaging each of their own final attacks.

“Ssssuuuuuuu…” Aleph breathed in, and at the same time, the image of the dragon did the same. The group within was trapped in a blinding light, but he had no doubt his companions were doing the same. He took in as much power as he dared, as much as this mortal body could afford. Thankfully, after years of training, it could contain as much mana as anybody. He filled himself up with any power he could pull in, from all sources nearby, until–

“Soul burst!”

He shot it all out in a blanket of white. A jet of white flames exploded in the sky, obscuring the mad god temporarily. The ground shook as the forces met, rendering the mass of earth that was being sucked up to float in place, indecisive as to their own fate. 

This happened before, though, and Aleph had seen how this ends. He felt the power begin to drain from him, and with it, their hopes for survival. He strained against it, pouring everything he had into the spell. It was holding up for longer than he had before, but that was all.

Like before, though, he had plenty of backup.

“Now!” He cried, signaling for his companions to attack. 

“”—!!!!””

A succession of countless spells were cast, but was drowned out by a genuine dragon’s roar. A prism of energy shot out from all around him, scattering as they joined his ‘breath’ and shooting straight into the massive eye in the sky.

__________________________________

Rayse got back up on his feet, pulling himself up by the spear. His hands and feet felt numb, and he was scared to look at them. They must be messed up, to say nothing of the rest of his body. He could feel his strength slipping by the second, but he ignored all of it.

The black obsidian shined from beyond, likely the handiwork of those outside. Rayse blinked back tears, furiously trying to keep his vision on his target.

His eyes were only on his own gem heart, floating on its own and exuding a fell aura. It dripped with black mana so dense that it had gone beyond its normally gaseous state, and was now dripping with power. He absorbed so much mana, multiple heralds’ worth, and this was the result. In Erebos’ eyes, he probably looked no different than any other demon king.

Again, warmth spread from the spear in his hand. It still glowed green from Sonia’s power, even though the gem that powered it was out of his hands. It had reformed its pointed edge, returning to an image of the Unbroken he had come to rely on.

“Haaaah!”

Rayse exhaled as he hoisted it up, squeezing out the last of his strength. He jabbed Unbroken upwards, piercing through the blackened heart of the Abyss.

__________________________________

“UEEEEEEEEEEKKK!!!!!”

Erebos’ massive image flickered as it reared back, a massive sword hitting it right in the eye. The god of the void suddenly didn’t seem as large. It thrashed around, leaving massive trenches in the ground as its many limbs lashed randomly, but it was still preferable to the earlier destruction. But the barrage wasn’t done; What followed was a series of blows, a symphony of manmade power the cosmos had never seen, or will ever see since.

A jet of black flames, pillars of shadow and holy light struck next, followed closely by Lacey’s star. It bounced around an array of crystals, each time increasing in strength and gaining a color of the rainbow. The crystals themselves smacked harmlessly against God's body, but the star itself more than made up for it.

Screeeeeech!!!—

Aleph knelt to one knee, absolutely spent now as he watched the rest of his companions follow through with their attacks. Massive gouges of earth appeared all over them as Erebos continued to lash out, desperate in its attempts to destroy them all despite being blinded. All the while Lacey’s spell continued, assaulting it with multicolored explosions every time.

The rest of them followed him on the ground one by one, each flopping to the ground in exhaustion as they burned away their very lives for each of their attacks. Aleph tried to keep up his spectral dragons’ protection, but soon, Betrayal had to use its body to shield them.

Eventually, only Lacey and Brandon were left standing. His blade was lodged into the God of the Void, with two streams of power left to push it along.

It was effective, too. The God in the sky was visibly pushed back, becoming more and more translucent with each passing moment. Sparks escaped from the wound it sustained, as if entire cosmos were spilling out from his body.

“”Haaaah!”” The pair shout in unison, and what followed was an explosion of light that didn’t lose to the ones before it.

A rush of wind blew all over him, as Betrayal shielded them from the blast. He felt the concern over his students’ safety overpower him, scared of what may have happened even though they were right in front of him.

Aleph struggled to stand, dragging himself to his students’ side while scanning the skies. The remnant of Erebos’ demise gave him no rush of pleasure, no feeling of accomplishment, just a growing need of tallying his losses. 

But the clear sky and sweet morning rays of the sun made it clear: Erebos has been defeated.